The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has appointed 16 new directors across key departments in a significant leadership shakeups.

These appointments affect crucial areas such as Monetary Policy department, Trade and Exchange Department, Banking Supervision, Payment Systems and Consumer Protection among others.

This new appointments are coming at a time when regulators are tightening oversight on banks and financial technology firms as it declared last week as well as the final leg of the banking sector recapitulation exercise.

A source at the CBN told The Nation that ‘the very best were selected as such, no one will complain about the process because they all were appointed from within the system.’

This restructuring signals broader changes at the apex bank.

With the latest appointments, the CBN is strengthening its focus on compliance, consumer protection, and financial sector stability, especially in the face of increasing fraud risks and regulatory actions and other critical areas.

One of the most notable appointments is that of Dr. Olubukola Akinwunmi Akinniyi as Director of Banking Supervision.

His new role places him at the center of banking oversight, a crucial function as Nigeria’s financial institutions prepare to support President Bola Tinubu’s ambition of building a $1 trillion economy.

Another key change is in payment system supervision. The CBN has split the Payments System Management Department into two distinct units—one focused on policy and the other on supervision.

Yusuf Rakiya Opeyemi has been appointed Director of the newly created Payment System Supervision Department, reflecting the CBN’s commitment to tackling rising fraud and ensuring stronger regulatory oversight.

Industry stakeholders had criticised the former structure, which housed payment supervision and policy under a single team, as a bottleneck to effective regulation.

Consumer protection is another area where the CBN is making significant changes. Aisha Isa-Olatinwo has been named Director of Consumer Protection, a department that has faced criticism over unresolved disputes between banks and their customers.

With a background in audits, Olatinwo is expected to take a stricter stance on financial institutions that fail to address customer complaints.

The newly appointed directors include Mal. Abdullahi Hamisu (Banking Services); Dr. OJumu Adenike Olubunmi (Medical Services); Mr. Makinde Kayode Olanrewaju (Procurement & Support Services); Mrs. Jide-Samuel Omoyemen Avbasowamen (Information Technology); Mrs. Sike Rita Ijeoma (Financial Policy and Regulation); Dr. Victor Ugbem Oboh (Monetary Policy); Mr. Nakorji Musa (Trade and Exchange); Dr. Vincent Monsurat Modesola (Strategy Management and Innovation); Mr. Farouk Mujtaba Muhammad (Reserve Management); Dr. Adetona Sikiru Adedeji (Currency Operations and Branch Management); Mr. Hassan Ibrahim Umar (Development and Finance Institutions Supervision); Mr. Solaja Mohammed-Jamiu Olayemi (Other Financial Institutions Supervision) and Dr. Okpanachi Usman Mose (Statistics).

All the appointments took effect from 3 March, 2025.

The new leadership team is expected to play a critical role in shaping Nigeria’s financial sector as the CBN enforces stricter regulations and aims for greater efficiency in monetary policy and financial stability.

The World Bank has approved a total of $2.2 billion in new loans for the Federal Government of Nigeria in 2025.

According to the World Bank’s project list, the $2.2 billion will be allocated across six different projects.

The global bank has earmarked $500 million for the ‘Community Action for Resilience and Economic Stimulus Programme,’ which is set for approval on March 17.

Also on March 31, the World Bank plans to approve $552 million for the ‘HOPE for Quality Basic Education for All’ and $800 million for ‘Accelerating Nutrition Results in Nigeria 2.0.’

Similarly, the bank stated that it will approve $300 million for the ‘Solutions for the Internally Displaced and Host Communities Project’ on July 15 and another $300 million for the ‘Health Security Program’ on August 19.

It was also noted that another project, ‘Building Resilient Digital Infrastructure for Growth (BRIDGE),’ will receive $500 million upon approval on September 15.

According to the World Bank, the BRIDGE initiative and the Health Security Programme are currently in the concept review stage, indicating that they are still in the early stages of assessment and planning.

On November 19, 2024, Nigeria’s loan exposure from the World Bank’s International Development Association (IDA) rose to $17.1 billion.

According to the IDA’s financial statement for September 2024, Nigeria ranked third on the list of the top 10 borrowers.

As of December 31, 2024, Nigeria’s exposure had dropped to $16.8 billion, but the country retained its position as the third-largest debtor to the World Bank’s IDA.

The Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) on Thursday voted unanimously to retain the Monetary Policy Rate (MPR), which is the baseline lending rate, at 27.50 per cent.

The MPC took the decision at the end of its 299th meeting and the first for 2025.

The committee also voted to retain the Cash Reserve Ratio (CRR) at 50 per cent for Deposit Money Banks and 16 per cent for Merchant Banks.

The MPC equally retained the Liquidity Ratio (LR) at 30 per cent and the Asymmetric Corridor at +500/-100 basis points around the MPR.